Riva1920 “Pace” Horse

Client: Riva1920

Year: 2013

3.6 m high, 5 m long, this carthorse has been digitally sculpted by Valerio Cometti, then manufactured by Riva1920’s modern CNC machines, carving solid walnut wood. A balanced mix of tradition and technology, experience and science. Almost 2 tons of weight and hundreds of hours of milling and finishing, make this sculpture a unique tribute to hard working and talent.

Activities

Riva1920 pace

Riva1920 pace

3.60-meter high and more than 5 meters long, this horse has been digitally “sculpted” by Valerio Cometti and “extracted” thanks to CNC-machine from walnut blocks. This is another example of the union between tradition and technology, wisdom and calculation. Almost two tons of weight and hundred hours of milling and finishing make this complex sculpture a real homage to the work, to the commitment of those, who don’t surrender and those, who believe in their skills. This horse, realized for “Salone del Mobile del 2013”, was exhibited at Expo 2015.

Product design is a multifaceted discipline, capable of transforming itself each time according to one’s sensitivity.
Here at Valerio Cometti+V12 Design, we are frequently involved in extremely complex projects, in which our creativity is challenged by endless manufacturing, marketing and pricing constraints. It has been a honour and an actual pleasure, letting our fantasy run free when Mr. Maurizio Riva, co-owner of the prestigious brand Riva1920, asked us to design an impressive sculpture that was supposed to be unveiled during Milan’s Design Week in 2013. Our scuplture was expected to amaze, impress and also deliver a message of robustness, reliability and commitment: all values that are common to both teams, the one at Riva1920 and the one here at Valerio Cometti+V12 Design.
Valerio’s proposal of scuplting a huge working horse was immediately approved, as it seemed very promising in delivering the visual message the sculpture was expected to.

After a long and painstaking work at the computer, manipulating one polygon at a time, the digital sculpture Valerio carved out of pixels and bytes was ready. The surfaces showed a very distinctive treatment: a “triangulated” geometry was developed in order to contaminate the classy feel of walnut timber with a more technological and modern look. Once the shape had been defined, we started working together with Riva1920 R&D team, in order to bring this huge 3.6 meter high and more than 5 meter long horse to life, considering that the final weight would have reached the 2 ton mark…
Yes, you read it correctly…it has been an extraordinary homage to the culture of timber and of design and the otherworldly dimensions only highlighted the overall ambition of the project.
Thirteen huge blocks of timber have been machined by the modern 5-axis milling machines within the Riva1920 plant. This gargantuan jigsaw has been assembled thanks to the extraordinary skill of Riva1920 craftmen: technology and experience came together in this unique project.
The final result mesmerised tens of thousand of visitors, endless photos have celebrated the common effort, but most of all have celebrated the power of design…this art that by assigning a material to dreams, makes them come true